Key takeaways
- Leveling past the point of usefulness. A Rare filler at Level 6 does the same job as one at max. Stop when it stops dying.
- Ignoring placement limits. Bringing three copies of a two-placement unit wastes a loadout slot for the entire run.
- Maxing before evolving. Evolution materials come from raids, and raid clears come from evolved units — the order is not optional.
- Chasing every banner. A half-built Secret is worse than a finished Mythic. The tier list assumes max level; an un-upgraded unit has no tier.
- No support slot. Two damage dealers plus one buff unit beats three damage dealers in almost every raid.
The current Anime Vanguards tier list is topped by Song Jinwu and Sukono for raid and endgame damage, with Divine Queen, Ice Queen and Strongest of Today forming the strongest farming and story core, and Igris and Beru as the best value mid-cost bruisers. If you are only going to build one unit this patch, build a Secret-tier single-target damage dealer first — it is the only role that clears raids and late-story Acts without needing a full supporting cast around it.
How these rankings were scored
Rarity is a poor proxy for strength in this game. A maxed Mythic that fits the mode will outperform an un-upgraded Secret almost every time, because placement limits and upgrade costs decide how much of your board a unit can actually occupy. The tiers below weight five things, and the weights are stated so you can re-rank units yourself after a balance patch.
| Weight | What it measures | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 35% | Raid and boss damage | Raid clears gate the evolution materials everything else needs |
| 25% | Farming and story clear speed | Most playtime is repeat clears, not one-off boss fights |
| 20% | Upgrade cost efficiency | A unit you cannot afford to level is a unit you do not own |
| 15% | Team synergy and support value | Buffs and crowd control multiply your damage dealers |
| 5% | Ease of obtaining | Matters for new accounts, not for players past Act 5 |
Quick comparison: the top units at a glance
Costs below are the approximate Coin total to take a unit from Level 1 to its maximum level, before evolution. Per the in-game unit pages, evolution adds a separate one-time cost on top, so a fully finished unit usually runs 35–50% more than the level cost alone.
| Unit | Rarity | Primary role | Best for | Placements | Lv1→max cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Song Jinwu | Secret | Single-target burst DPS | Raids, Infinite | 3 | ~78,000 Coins |
| Sukono | Secret | AoE burst DPS | Raids, Challenge | 2 | ~82,000 Coins |
| Divine Queen | Mythic | Hybrid DPS + team buff | Story, Raids | 3 | ~64,000 Coins |
| Ice Queen | Mythic | Slow / crowd control | Farming, Story | 4 | ~58,000 Coins |
| Strongest of Today | Mythic | Ranged generalist | Story, Farming | 3 | ~66,000 Coins |
| Igris | Mythic | Melee bruiser | Early raids, Story | 4 | ~52,000 Coins |
| Beru | Mythic | Fast melee DPS | Story, farming | 5 | ~50,000 Coins |
| Buff / support class | Epic–Legendary | Buffs, healing, debuffs | Raids, Infinite | 3 | ~30,000 Coins |
S+ tier: the units that define the current meta
Song Jinwu — best overall raid unit
Song Jinwu is the cleanest answer to “what do I bring to a boss fight.” Its damage profile is almost entirely single-target, which is exactly what raid and Infinite-mode bosses punish you for lacking, and its three placements let you stack copies on a single lane without gutting your board. The trade-off is that it is close to dead weight in wave-heavy story Acts — a maxed Song Jinwu clears a trash wave slower than a mid-level AoE unit, so you are paying Secret-tier upgrade costs for a specialist. Suits players who already have one farming unit finished and now need raid clears.
Sukono — best burst for raids and Challenge mode
Sukono trades placement count for raw AoE output: only two copies fit on the board, so every placement decision is permanent for that run. Per the game’s official patch notes, its damage scaling is heavily back-loaded, meaning the last two upgrade levels are worth more than the first four combined. That makes it a poor early investment and an excellent late one. If you are still clearing Acts for the first time, bank the Coins and come back after you can fund the full upgrade path in one sitting.
S tier: the safest investments for most accounts
Divine Queen — best hybrid if you want one unit for everything
Divine Queen is the unit most players should build first. It does respectable AoE damage and carries a team-wide buff, so it never becomes useless when the mode changes. It is not the top of any single category, which is the honest trade-off: you get a unit that is strong in story, raids and farming rather than dominant in one. Three placements and a ~64,000 Coin level cost put it within reach of a mid-game account.
Ice Queen — best farming and crowd control anchor
Ice Queen does not win damage charts, and that is the point. Slows and freezes buy your damage dealers the seconds they need, which raises total team output more than a fourth DPS would. Four placements make it the most flexible Mythic in the game for wave-heavy modes. Build it after your first damage dealer, not before.
Strongest of Today — best ranged generalist for story
A reliable ranged damage unit with no obvious weakness, and the easiest Mythic to recommend to a player who does not know what their roster is missing. Its main drawback is cost efficiency: at roughly 66,000 Coins to max, it is priced like a specialist while performing like a very good generalist.
A tier: strong, cheap, and forgiving
Igris and Beru
Both sit in the 50,000–52,000 Coin range to max, roughly 20% cheaper than the S tier, and both hold lanes without support. Igris is the better early-raid pick because it survives contact with a boss; Beru is the better farming pick because its five placements let you cover more of the map. Neither is a long-term answer for Infinite mode, but for Acts 1 through 8 they will carry you further per Coin spent than anything else on this list.
Support and buff units (Epic–Legendary class)
This is the most underrated slot in the game. A ~30,000 Coin buff unit placed behind two damage dealers often adds more effective damage than a third damage dealer costing three times as much. The rule of thumb: once your two main damage units are at max level, the next 30,000 Coins should go to support before it goes to a third DPS.
Upgrade cost maths: where the Coins actually go
The single most common waste in this game is leveling a unit you are not going to finish. Upgrade costs are not linear — roughly 40% of a unit’s total level cost is concentrated in the final three levels, according to the in-game upgrade screen. A unit parked at Level 7 is not “70% of a unit”; it is closer to 55–60% of one.
| Rarity | Typical Lv1→max cost | Evolution cost | Placements | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Common / Uncommon | 5,000–8,000 Coins | None | 6–8 | Filler only; never evolve |
| Rare | 12,000–16,000 Coins | ~8,000 + 2 materials | 5–6 | Early story stopgap |
| Epic | 20,000–26,000 Coins | ~15,000 + 3 materials | 4–5 | Fine as support, weak as DPS |
| Legendary | 34,000–42,000 Coins | ~22,000 + 4 materials | 3–4 | Mid-game bridge |
| Mythic | 50,000–66,000 Coins | ~30,000 + 5 materials | 3–5 | Main investment tier |
| Secret | 76,000–86,000 Coins | ~40,000 + 6 materials | 2–3 | Endgame only; finish what you start |
Two practical consequences. First, evolve before you push the last levels — evolution materials come from raids, so a unit you maxed but never evolved is a raid slot you are wasting. Second, a Rare or Epic filler at max level with six placements often generates more total value in early Acts than one expensive unit you cannot afford to level past 4.
Team building: match your roster to the mode
Most players run a six-unit loadout. The mistake is filling all six slots with damage. Here is how the slots should break down by what you are actually doing.
| Your situation | Core slots | Support | Filler | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New account, Acts 1–3 | 1 cheap AoE | 0 | 4 | Clear waves, bank Coins |
| Farming story Acts | 1 AoE + 1 fast melee | 1 buff | 2 | Clear speed per run |
| Standard raid | 1 single-target + 1 AoE | 1 buff/debuff | 1 | Boss damage uptime |
| Infinite / endgame | 2 DPS | 2 CC + heal | 0–1 | Surviving late waves |
| Low-placement challenge | 1 hybrid | 1 | 3 | Value per placement slot |
Where players lose value
- Leveling past the point of usefulness. A Rare filler at Level 6 does the same job as one at max. Stop when it stops dying.
- Ignoring placement limits. Bringing three copies of a two-placement unit wastes a loadout slot for the entire run.
- Maxing before evolving. Evolution materials come from raids, and raid clears come from evolved units — the order is not optional.
- Chasing every banner. A half-built Secret is worse than a finished Mythic. The tier list assumes max level; an un-upgraded unit has no tier.
- No support slot. Two damage dealers plus one buff unit beats three damage dealers in almost every raid.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best unit in Anime Vanguards right now?
Song Jinwu is the strongest single-target raid unit and Sukono is the strongest AoE burst unit, so which one is “best” depends on the mode. For a single unit that works everywhere, Divine Queen is the safer pick. The tier list is patch-dependent — the developers rebalance units regularly, so re-check after each update.
How much does it cost to max a Secret unit?
Budget roughly 76,000–86,000 Coins for levels alone, plus about 40,000 Coins and six evolution materials for the evolution step. That is why most accounts should finish one Mythic before starting a Secret. Finishing one unit is worth more than half-finishing two.
Should I level a unit to max before evolving it?
No. Evolve first, because evolution unlocks the higher damage scaling that the final levels multiply. Leveling to max on an unevolved unit and then evolving it means paying twice for the same damage increase, and you will have spent raid materials you could have banked.
Which units are best for farming story Acts quickly?
Ice Queen plus a fast melee unit such as Beru covers both crowd control and wave clearing, with one buff unit behind them. Farming rewards clear speed, not damage totals, so slows and AoE beat single-target burst. Keep your raid specialist out of the farming loadout.
How many copies of the same unit should I place?
Place as many as the placement limit allows, but only if you can afford to level them. Two maxed copies beat three half-leveled ones, and placement slots are a shared resource across the whole loadout. Check the placement number on the unit page before you commit the slot.
Is it worth pulling on every new banner?
Only if you can fund the upgrade path immediately. A new Secret unit at Level 1 will underperform a maxed Mythic you already own, so pulls are a Coin commitment, not just a Gem one. If your current roster is not maxed, the banner is a distraction.
